2 ‘Verbally Abusive’ Plane Passengers Force Plane to Divert After Alleged Threat

Two “verbally abusive” plane passengers were removed after forcing their flight to divert on Friday.

According to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), United Airlines flight 6378, operated by Mesa Airlines, made an unplanned landing at Nashville International Airport around 1:50 p.m. local time on Sept. 5, after its crew reported “a passenger disturbance.” 

The agency confirmed it will investigate the incident. 

The Houston-bound Embraer 175 departed Pittsburgh International Airport at 1:16 p.m. local time, according to FlightAware. Just over an hour into the flight, the aircraft diverted to Nashville.

A representative for Mesa Airlines told local outlet KHOU 11 the plane diverted to remove “two verbally abusive passengers and was met by local law enforcement upon arrival,”

According to passengers on board the aircraft, flight attendants provided a cryptic warning to those on board amid the incident.

“The flight attendants actually did come on and say, hey, you know, just for the record… it’s not a good idea to threaten anybody on a flight,” passenger Juan Marroquin told the local outlet. 

Another passenger alleged the two disruptive individuals were initially not complying with police who boarded the plane.

“I turned around and police officers are trying to escort these people off the plane and at first it didn’t seem like they really wanted to move,” flyer John Smith recounted. “I guess they thought about the better process of the whole situation, and so they got off the plane.”

A representative for Nashville International Airport deferred to Mesa Airlines, who did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment. 

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Last week, a plane passenger was forcibly removed from an aircraft after he allegedly refused to turn off his phone. 

Video footage captured on Monday, Sept. 1, shows an Enugu Air customer dragged by federal airport authorities off a passenger jet. The flight was scheduled to depart the state of Enugu for Lagos, Nigeria. 

Obiageli Orah, the director of public affairs and consumer protection at the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, told Newsflare the passenger repeatedly failed to comply with safety instructions.

“So far, what we have gathered is that a passenger was meant to switch off his mobile phone, but he refused to abide by that instruction,” Orah said. “Other passengers also asked him to turn off his phone, and when he refused, security personnel on the ground were alerted.”

She added, “The aircraft had to go back to deplane him.”

Orah did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.